Louisiana inventory of all hogs and pigs on December 1, 2023, totaled 5,000 head, was unchanged from December 1, 2022; breeding hog inventory, at 1,000 head, was unchanged from previous year; and market hog inventory, at 4,000 head, was unchanged from the previous year. For the December 2022 - November 2023 period, the pig crop totaled 8,200 head, up 14 percent from the same time period the previous year.
Read MoreUSDA officials want farmers to know that the deadline for a special loan assistance program is fast approaching. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 included a provision to help borrowers who have taken extraordinary measures to continue making their Farm Service Agency loan payments. Those borrowers have until Dec. 31 to apply for assistance.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is hosting more than a dozen in-person and virtual workshops this winter for producers to learn about new and expanded livestock risk management products. The “Livestock Roadshow,” hosted by USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA), will highlight policy improvements based on feedback from America’s livestock producers as part of the agency’s broader outreach and education efforts
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced that agricultural producers can now enroll in the Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2024 crop year. Producers can enroll and make election changes for the 2024 crop year starting Dec. 18, 2023. The deadline to complete enrollment and any election change is March 15, 2024.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminds specialty crop growers that assistance is available for producers who incur eligible on-farm food safety program expenses to obtain or renew a food safety certification through the Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops (FSCSC) program. Producers can apply for assistance on their calendar year 2023 expenses through Jan. 31, 2024.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is requesting public input – due by Feb. 16, 2024 – on how foreign filers report agricultural land holdings in the United States.
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is proposing to update the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act Report form so that reporting can include data on long-term lessees, data to assess the impacts of foreign investment on agricultural producers and rural communities, and to gather geospatial information.
Read MoreUSDA is accepting applications for the 2024 USDA 1890 National Scholars Program. The application deadline is March 1, 2024.
The USDA 1890 National Scholars Program is aimed at bolstering educational and career opportunities for students from rural or underserved communities around the country. It was established in 1992 as part of the partnership between USDA and the 1890 land-grant universities.
Read MoreFarmers, ranchers, and forest landowners who experienced discrimination in USDA farm lending programs prior to January 2021 may be eligible for the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program. This program is an important step in delivering on USDA’s commitment of providing financial assistance to those who have faced discrimination in USDA farm lending programs.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced that it will begin issuing more than $223 million in Pandemic Assistance Revenue Program (PARP) payments. These payments help producers who suffered a decrease in allowable gross revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic for the 2020 calendar year.
Read MoreCongresswoman Julia Letlow (LA-05) introduced H.R. 6717, the Emergency Conservation Program Improvement Act of 2023. This proposed bill will revise two programs within the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 - the Emergency Conservation Program and the Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP), to provide farmers and owners of nonindustrial forest land who have been impacted by natural disasters with the option to receive advance emergency payments prior to carrying out emergency measures.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development announced today that it is accepting applications to advance economic development and create jobs for people in rural America. USDA is making this funding available under the Rural Business Development Grant program to support business opportunities or business enterprise projects in rural communities.
Read MoreAs of December 1, Louisiana upland cotton production is forecast at 210,000 bales, down 30,000 bales from the November 1 forecast and down 148,000 bales from last year. Yield is expected to average 877 pounds per harvested acre, down 125 pounds from last month and down 27 pounds from 2022. Harvested acreage is estimated at 115,000 acres, down 75,000 acres from 2022.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is updating the Federal crop insurance program to affirm the use of USDA conservation practices as Good Farming Practices for crop insurance. Recently, USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) recently updated the Good Farming Practices Handbook, as part of the agency’s broader efforts to support conservation and climate-smart activities as well as to improve crop insurance for agricultural producers.
Read MoreAs part of ongoing outreach efforts to help farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners who experienced discrimination by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Analytic Acquisitions LLC will host a series of informational events in Louisiana in December.
Authorized by Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program (DFAP) makes available $2.2 billion to producers who experienced farm-lending discrimination prior to January 1, 2021. These events will offer guidance on how to apply and how to access the support.
Read MoreThis program consists of ive webinar sessions (2 hours each) over the basics of crop insurance. The objective is to provide growers with the information needed to make an informed decision.
Crop insurance education consisting of sequential webinars, homework assignments, and help sessions, will be delivered via a partnership of subject matter experts and extension educators in 10 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
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